Workplace social capital and turnover intention in nursing home caregivers: the mediating role of occupational burnout and the moderating role of professional certification.

This cross-sectional study examined correlational associations among workplace social capital, occupational burnout, professional certification, and turnover intention in a sample of 222 Chinese nursing home caregivers, grounded in Social Capital Theory and Conservation of Resources Theory. Covariate-adjusted correlational results indicated a negative concurrent linkage between workplace social capital and turnover intention, with occupational burnout exhibiting a statistical mediating pattern in this linkage (indirect association = -0.0917, 95% bias-corrected bootstrap CI [-0.1883, -0.0199]). Professional certification functioned as a significant first-stage moderator of this statistical indirect pathway (index of moderated mediation = 0.1527, 95% bias-corrected bootstrap CI [0.0151, 0.3180]). The statistical indirect association via occupational burnout reached significance only among uncertified caregivers, while the corresponding indirect linkage was non-significant for certified caregivers. Higher concurrent workplace social resources corresponded to weaker burnout and turnover intention to a stronger degree for caregivers lacking professional certification with limited personal human capital endowments. This study integrates Social Capital Theory and Conservation of Resources Theory to delineate differentiated correlational patterns across caregiver subgroups, and puts forward targeted retention strategies differentiated by certification background for long-term care facilities.